4 p.m. et

🏐 DI women's volleyball tourney

6 p.m. ET

Women's College Cup semifinals

🏀 Kim Mulkey earns 700th win

🔮 DI men's hoops bracket predictions
wrestling-d1 flag

Matt Holmes | NCAA.com | February 11, 2021

NCAA releases pre-allocations and first coaches ranking for 2021 Division I Wrestling Championships

What to look for in the 2021 wrestling season

INDIANAPOLIS — The NCAA has announced the pre-allocations and first coaches ranking for the 2021 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships.

The weight class conference champion in each qualifying tournament will earn an automatic qualifier to the national championships. Each conference was awarded additional pre-allocations based on the five-year average (2016-20) of pre-allocations earned by the conference in each weight class.

In recent years, pre-allocations have been determined by a formula measuring Division I winning percentage, ratings percentage index and coaches’ ranking. A decrease in overall matches, and in particular non-conference matches, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, led the NCAA Division I Wrestling Committee to transition to using the five-year historical average to determine pre-allocations for 2021. For any adjustments in conference alignment over the last five years, historical pre-allocations stayed with the conference where they were earned. The competition status of schools for 2021 also did not impact the calculation of pre-allocations.

POLL: Check out the latest NWCA rankings

“The committee knew that there wasn’t going to be enough regular-season competition to utilize the existing process where wrestlers earned pre-allocations for their conference based on regular season performance,” said Karen Langston, senior associate athletics director at California State University, Bakersfield and chair of the wrestling committee. “The option to utilize the five-year historical average was an equitable alternative, and the way it worked out has opened more at-large spots this year for deserving wrestlers who don’t qualify through their conference tournament.”

*Scroll to the right to view the whole table 

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS QUALIFIER BREAKDOWN
Conference 125 133 141 149 157 165 174 184 197 285 PA AQ Total
ACC 2 3 2 2 3 2 2 2 2 3 23 10 33
Big 12 4 4 3 4 2 4 3 3 4 4 35 10 45
Big Ten 7 7 7 6 7 7 7 7 5 6 66 10 76
EIWA 2 2 4 3 4 4 4 5 4 3 35 10 45
MAC 3 4 3 3 3 1 2 2 2 2 25 10 35
Pac-12 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 2 1 9 10 19
Southern 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 3 10 13
                           
Pre-Allocation 19 20 20 20 20 19 19 20 19 20 196    
Automatic Qualifier 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7   70  
At-Large 7 6 6 6 6 7 7 6 7 6     64
Total 33 33 33 33 33 33 33 33 33 33     330

Note: The number under each weight class is the number of pre-allocations. Add the automatic qualifier for the conference tournament champion to account for the total qualifying spots available at each weight for each conference tournament (i.e ACC 125 has 2 pre-allocations plus 1 AQ to account for 3 total NCAA spots available at that weight

After the conference tournaments have concluded, the Division I Wrestling Committee will meet in-person to select the remaining at-large qualifiers to fill out the 33-man bracket in each weight class, which will be announced March 9, while brackets and seeding will be announced on ncaa.com at 6 p.m. March 10.

The coaches’ rankings are determined by a vote of 14 coaches in each weight class with two head coaches from each conference. For ranking purposes, coaches may only consider a wrestler that has been designated as a starter at a respective weight class. For the first ranking, wrestlers must have two Division I matches in the weight class to be considered with at least one within the last 30 days.

IOWA WRESTLING: Tracking Spencer Lee's quest for a perfect wrestling season

Seven different schools are represented by the 10 wrestlers ranked at the top of their weight class in this opening ranking of the season covering matches through Sunday, February 7. Spencer Lee at 125 pounds, Jaydin Eierman at 141 and Michael Kemerer at 174 give Iowa three wrestlers ranked at the top of their weight class. Virginia Tech is the only other school with multiple top-ranked wrestlers with former NCAA champion Mekhi Lewis at 165 pounds and Hunter Bolen at 184.

The additional top-ranked wrestlers include Roman Bravo-Young of Penn State at 133 pounds, Sammy Sasso of Ohio State at 149, Hayden Hidlay of NC State at 157, Eric Schultz of Nebraska at 197 and Gable Steveson of Minnesota at heavyweight.

A full description of the entire selection process for the 2021 Division I Wrestling Championships is available at ncaa.org.

NCAA Division I Wrestling Coaches Rank - Through Matches of Feb. 7

125 POUNDS
Rank Name SCHOOL Conference
1 Spencer Lee Iowa Big Ten
2 Drew Hildebrandt Central Michigan MAC
3 Brandon Courtney Arizona St. Pac 12
4 Sam Latona Virginia Tech ACC
5 Jakob Camacho NC State ACC
6 Taylor LaMont Utah Valley Big 12
7 Liam Cronin Nebraska Big Ten
8 Michael DeAugustino Northwestern Big Ten
9 Brody Teske Northern Iowa Big 12
10 Patrick Mckee Minnesota Big Ten
11 Devin Schroder Purdue Big Ten
12 Dylan Ragusin Michigan Big Ten
13 Malik Heinselman Ohio St. Big Ten
14 RayVon Foley Michigan St. Big Ten
15 Trevor Mastrogiovanni Oklahoma St. Big 12
16 Justin Cardani Illinois Big Ten
17 Codi Russell Appalachian St. SoCon
18 Connor Brown Missouri MAC
19 Eric Barnett Wisconsin Big Ten
20 Brock Hudkins Indiana Big Ten
21 Fabian Gutierrez Chattanooga SoCon
22 Jaret Lane Lehigh EIWA
23 Jake Ferri Kent St. MAC
24 Killian Cardinale West Virginia Big 12
25 Logan Treaster Navy EIWA
26 Daniel Vega South Dakota St. Big 12
27 Cody Phippen Air Force Big 12
28 Brandon Kaylor Oregon St. Pac 12
29 Nic Aguilar Rutgers Big Ten
30 Jackson DiSario Stanford Pac 12
31 Dylan Ryder Hofstra EIWA
32 Micah Roes Binghamton EIWA
33 Jonathon Tropea Rider MAC

133 POUNDS
Rank Name SCHOOL Conference
1 Roman Bravo-Young Penn St. Big Ten
2 Austin DeSanto Iowa Big Ten
3 Micky Phillippi Pittsburgh ACC
4 Sammy Alvarez Rutgers Big Ten
5 Korbin Myers Virginia Tech ACC
6 Michael McGee Arizona St. Pac 12
7 Louie Hayes Virginia ACC
8 Jaime Hernandez North Carolina ACC
9 Matt Schmitt Missouri MAC
10 Jarrett Trombley NC State ACC
11 Kyle Biscoglia Northern Iowa Big 12
12 Mosha Schwartz Northern Colorado Big 12
13 Lucas Byrd Illinois Big Ten
14 Chris Cannon Northwestern Big Ten
15 Zach Price South Dakota St. Big 12
16 Jared Van Vleet Air Force Big 12
17 Job Greenwood Wyoming Big 12
18 Brandon Ty Smith Utah Valley Big 12
19 Ryan Sullivan West Virginia Big 12
20 Jordan Decatur Ohio St. Big Ten
21 Boo Dryden Minnesota Big Ten
22 Devan Turner Oregon St. Pac 12
23 Darren Miller Bucknell EIWA
24 Jason Miranda Stanford Pac 12
25 Andrew Marten Central Michigan MAC
26 Paul Bianchi Little Rock Pac 12
27 Kellyn March North Dakota St. Big 12
28 Bryce West Northern Illinois MAC
28 Mario Guillen Ohio MAC
30 Anthony Madrigal Oklahoma Big 12
31 Haiden Drury Fresno St. Big 12
32 Malyke Hines Lehigh EIWA
33 Zach Redding Iowa St. Big 12

141 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Jaydin Eierman Iowa Big Ten
2 Nick Lee Penn St. Big Ten
3 Sebastian Rivera Rutgers Big Ten
4 Allan Hart Missouri MAC
5 Chad Red Nebraska Big Ten
6 Ian Parker Iowa St. Big 12
7 Dom Demas Oklahoma Big 12
8 Tariq Wilson NC State ACC
9 Zachary Sherman North Carolina ACC
10 Cody Trybus Navy EIWA
11 Dresden Simon Central Michigan MAC
12 DJ Lloren Fresno St. Big 12
13 Dylan Duncan Illinois Big Ten
14 Brian Courtney Virginia ACC
15 Grant Willits Oregon St. Pac 12
16 Clay Carlson South Dakota St. Big 12
17 Cole Matthews Pittsburgh ACC
18 Saul Ervin SIU Edwardsville MAC
19 Drew Mattin Michigan Big Ten
20 Marcos Polanco Minnesota Big Ten
21 Derek Spann Buffalo MAC
22 Lenny Petersen Air Force Big 12
23 Sam Hillegas Virginia Tech ACC
24 Dusty Hone Oklahoma St. Big 12
25 Zack Trampe Binghamton EIWA
26 Peter LiPari Arizona St. Pac 12
27 Lawrence Saenz Cal Poly Pac 12
28 Parker Filius Purdue Big Ten
29 Angelo Martinoni CSU Bakersfield Pac 12
30 Chase Zollmann Wyoming Big 12
31 Lane Peters Army West Point EIWA
32 Christopher Sandoval Northern Colorado Big 12
33 Franco Valdes Chattanooga SoCon

149 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Sammy Sasso Ohio St. Big Ten
2 Austin O`Connor North Carolina ACC
3 Brock Mauller Missouri MAC
4 Boo Lewallen Oklahoma St. Big 12
5 Max Murin Iowa Big Ten
6 Jarrett Degen Iowa St. Big 12
7 Kanen Storr Michigan Big Ten
8 Michael Carr Illinois Big Ten
9 Griffin Parriott Purdue Big Ten
10 Bryce Andonian Virginia Tech ACC
11 Yahya Thomas Northwestern Big Ten
12 Legend Lamer Cal Poly Pac 12
13 Joshua Heil Campbell SoCon
14 Jonathan Millner Appalachian St. SoCon
15 Mitch Moore Oklahoma Big 12
16 Jaden Abas Stanford Pac 12
17 Graham Rooks Indiana Big Ten
18 Casey Cobb Navy EIWA
19 PJ Ogunsanya Army West Point EIWA
20 Brock Hardy Nebraska Big Ten
21 Mike Van Brill Rutgers Big Ten
22 Josh Finesilver Duke ACC
23 Luke Gardner Penn St. Big Ten
24 Drew Scharenbrock Wisconsin Big Ten
25 Jimmy Hoffman Lehigh EIWA
26 Michael Blockhus Minnesota Big Ten
27 Cameron Hunsaker Utah Valley Big 12
28 Luke Kemerer Pittsburgh ACC
29 Selwyn Porter The Citadel SoCon
30 Greg gaxiola Hofstra EIWA
31 Ed Scott NC State ACC
32 Cory Crooks Arizona St. Pac 12
33 Dylan Martinez Air Force Big 12

157 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Hayden Hidlay NC State ACC
2 David Carr Iowa St. Big 12
3 Jesse Dellavecchia Rider MAC
4 Kaleb Young Iowa Big Ten
5 Brayton Lee Minnesota Big Ten
6 Kendall Coleman Purdue Big Ten
7 Will Lewan Michigan Big Ten
8 Jarrett Jacques Missouri MAC
9 Brady Berge Penn St. Big Ten
10 Justin Thomas Oklahoma Big 12
11 Requir Van der Merwe Stanford Pac 12
12 Jared Franek North Dakota St. Big 12
13 Wyatt Sheets Oklahoma St. Big 12
14 Markus Hartman Army West Point EIWA
15 Hunter Willits Oregon St. Pac 12
16 Justin Ruffin SIU Edwardsville MAC
17 Justin McCoy Virginia ACC
18 Cade DeVos South Dakota St. Big 12
19 Jacob Wright Wyoming Big 12
20 Holden Heller Hofstra EIWA
21 Parker Kropman Drexel EIWA
22 Chase Saldate Michigan St. Big Ten
23 Garrett Model Wisconsin Big Ten
24 Benjamin Barton Campbell SoCon
25 Joshua McClure North Carolina ACC
26 Andrew Cerniglia Navy EIWA
27 Robert Kannaird Rutgers Big Ten
28 Elijah Cleary Ohio St. Big Ten
29 Connor Brady Virginia Tech ACC
30 Cody Bond Appalachian St. SoCon
31 Jordan Slivka Ohio MAC
32 Alex Carida Bloomsburg MAC
33 Johnny Lovett Central Michigan MAC

165 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Mekhi Lewis Virginia Tech ACC
2 Alex Marinelli Iowa Big Ten
3 Shane Griffith Stanford Pac 12
4 Travis Wittlake Oklahoma St. Big 12
5 Anthony Valencia Arizona St. Pac 12
6 Dan Braunagel Illinois Big Ten
7 Zach Hartman Bucknell EIWA
8 Ethan Smith Ohio St. Big Ten
9 Jake Wentzel Pittsburgh ACC
10 Kennedy Monday North Carolina ACC
11 Jake Keating Virginia ACC
12 Joe Lee Penn St. Big Ten
13 Keegan O`toole Missouri MAC
14 Tanner Skidgel Navy EIWA
15 Andrew Sparks Minnesota Big Ten
16 William Formato Appalachian St. SoCon
17 Thomas Bullard NC State ACC
18 Peyton Robb Nebraska Big Ten
19 Cameron Amine Michigan Big Ten
20 Izzak Olejnik Northern Illinois MAC
21 Peyton Hall West Virginia Big 12
22 Jake Tucker Michigan St. Big Ten
23 Rodrick Mosley Gardner-Webb SoCon
24 Ricky Stamm Hofstra EIWA
25 Nick South Indiana Big Ten
26 Evan Barczak Drexel EIWA
27 Cole Moody Wyoming Big 12
28 Andrew Nicholson Chattanooga SoCon
29 Pat Schoenfelder Northern Iowa Big 12
30 Colt Yinger Ohio MAC
31 Luke Weber North Dakota St. Big 12
32 Brevin Cassella Binghamton EIWA
33 Gerrit Nijenhuis Purdue Big Ten

174 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Michael Kemerer Iowa Big Ten
2 Logan Massa Michigan Big Ten
3 Mikey Labriola Nebraska Big Ten
4 Kaleb Romero Ohio St. Big Ten
5 Demetrius Romero Utah Valley Big 12
6 Carter Starocci Penn St. Big Ten
7 Daniel Bullard NC State ACC
8 Donnell Washington Indiana Big Ten
9 Peyton Mocco Missouri MAC
10 Hayden Hastings Wyoming Big 12
11 Dustin Plott Oklahoma St. Big 12
12 Andrew McNally Kent St. MAC
13 Thomas Flitz Appalachian St. SoCon
14 Austin Murphy Campbell SoCon
15 Michael O`Malley Drexel EIWA
16 Clay Lautt North Carolina ACC
17 Bernie Truax Cal Poly Pac 12
18 Jacob Oliver Edinboro MAC
19 Jackson Turley Rutgers Big Ten
20 Lance Runyon Northern Iowa Big 12
21 Mason Kauffman Northern Illinois MAC
22 Jackson Hemauer Northern Colorado Big 12
23 Julien Broderson Iowa St. Big 12
24 Jake Allar Minnesota Big Ten
25 Cody Surratt Air Force Big 12
26 Drew Hughes Michigan St. Big Ten
27 Anthony Mantanona Oklahoma Big 12
28 Victor Marcelli Virginia ACC
29 Jared Krattiger Wisconsin Big Ten
30 Ross McFarland Hofstra EIWA
31 Cade King South Dakota St. Big 12
32 DJ Shannon Illinois Big Ten
33 Angel Garcia Rider MAC

184 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Hunter Bolen Virginia Tech ACC
2 Aaron Brooks Penn St. Big Ten
3 Trent Hidlay NC State ACC
4 Lou Deprez Binghamton EIWA
5 Parker Keckeisen Northern Iowa Big 12
6 Dakota Geer Oklahoma St. Big 12
7 Christopher Weiler Wisconsin Big Ten
8 Layne Malczewski Michigan St. Big Ten
9 Owen Webster Minnesota Big Ten
10 Jeremiah Kent Missouri MAC
11 Taylor Venz Nebraska Big Ten
12 Zach Braunagel Illinois Big Ten
13 Nelson Brands Iowa Big Ten
14 Brit Wilson Northern Illinois MAC
15 John Poznanski Rutgers Big Ten
16 Max Lyon Purdue Big Ten
17 Rocky Jordan Ohio St. Big Ten
18 David Key Navy EIWA
19 Tate Samuelson Wyoming Big 12
20 Alan Clothier Northern Colorado Big 12
21 Michael Battista Virginia ACC
22 Devin Kane North Carolina ACC
23 Caleb Hopkins Campbell SoCon
24 Gregg Harvey Pittsburgh ACC
25 Matthew Waddell Chattanooga SoCon
26 Dominic Ducharme CSU Bakersfield Pac 12
27 George Walton Rider MAC
28 Darrien Roberts Oklahoma Big 12
29 Ryan Reyes Oregon St. Pac 12
30 Hunter Cruz Fresno St. Big 12
31 Cade Belshay Arizona St. Pac 12
32 Taylor Brown Army West Point EIWA
33 DeAndre Nassar Cleveland St. MAC

197 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Eric Schultz Nebraska Big Ten
2 Jacob Warner Iowa Big Ten
3 Kordell Norfleet Arizona St. Pac 12
4 Noah Adams West Virginia Big 12
5 Tanner Sloan South Dakota St. Big 12
6 Cameron Caffey Michigan St. Big Ten
7 Nino Bonaccorsi Pittsburgh ACC
8 Greg Bulsak Clarion MAC
9 Isaac Trumble NC State ACC
10 Jay Aiello Virginia ACC
11 Lucas Davison Northwestern Big Ten
12 Stephen Buchanan Wyoming Big 12
13 AJ Ferrari Oklahoma St. Big 12
14 Rocky Elam Missouri MAC
15 Jake Woodley Oklahoma Big 12
16 Jacob Koser Navy EIWA
17 Thomas Penola Purdue Big Ten
18 Max Shaw North Carolina ACC
19 Jake Jakobsen Lehigh EIWA
20 JT Brown Army West Point EIWA
21 Bryan McLaughlin Drexel EIWA
22 Matt Wroblewski Illinois Big Ten
23 Gavin Hoffman Ohio St. Big Ten
24 Jacob Seely Northern Colorado Big 12
25 Billy Janzer Rutgers Big Ten
26 Landon Pelham Central Michigan MAC
27 Chris Kober Campbell SoCon
28 Gage Braun Northern Illinois MAC
29 Stanley Smeltzer Virginia Tech ACC
30 Keegan Moore Northern Iowa Big 12
31 J.J Dixon Oregon St. Pac 12
32 Yonger Bastida Pomares Iowa St. Big 12
33 Tyler Mousaw VMI SoCon

285 POUNDS
Rank Name School Conference
1 Gable Steveson Minnesota Big Ten
2 Mason Parris Michigan Big Ten
3 Tony Cassioppi Iowa Big Ten
4 Matt Stencel Central Michigan MAC
5 Gannon Gremmel Iowa St. Big 12
6 Carter Isley Northern Iowa Big 12
7 Jordan Wood Lehigh EIWA
8 Luke Luffman Illinois Big Ten
9 Ethan Laird Rider MAC
10 Christian Lance Nebraska Big Ten
11 Trent Hillger Wisconsin Big Ten
12 Zach Elam Missouri MAC
13 Cohlton Schultz Arizona St. Pac 12
14 Brian Andrews Wyoming Big 12
15 Tate Orndorff Ohio St. Big Ten
16 Seth Nevills Penn St. Big Ten
17 Deonte Wilson NC State ACC
18 Brandon Metz North Dakota St. Big 12
19 John Borst Virginia Tech ACC
20 Quinn Miller Virginia ACC
21 Josh Heindselman Oklahoma Big 12
22 Nathan Traxler Stanford Pac 12
23 Sam Schuyler Buffalo MAC
24 Johnathan Birchmeier Navy EIWA
25 Austin Harris Oklahoma St. Big 12
26 Jon Spaulding Edinboro MAC
27 Andrew Gunning North Carolina ACC
28 Wyatt Hendrickson Air Force Big 12
29 Robert Heald Army West Point EIWA
30 Colton McKiernan SIU Edwardsville MAC
31 Michael McAleavey The Citadel SoCon
32 Max Ihry Northern Illinois MAC
33 Zachary Knighton-Ward Hofstra EIWA

“It’s like a fairy tale:” Inside South Dakota State’s rapidly improving wrestling program

Tanner Sloan and the Jackrabbits enter the second half of the 2023-2024 season with big goals. Here's a look back at how the program has developed title contenders over the last six years under head coach Damion Hahn.
READ MORE

Cliff Keen Invitational preview: Teams and wrestlers you need to watch

Sixteen of the top 25 teams in the country will arrive in Las Vegas for the annual Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational on Dec. 1. These are the biggest storylines to watch.
READ MORE

Making history at Morgan State: Q&A with wrestling coach Kenny Monday

In October 2021, Morgan State University announced that its historic wrestling program, one that was cut in the late 1990s, would return after over two decades as the only Division I historically black college and university (HBCU) in the NCAA. NCAA.com caught up with head coach Kenny Monday to talk about the team.
READ MORE